Don't Sell Yourself Short (Pirkei Avot 1:3) By Rabbi Moshe Snow

good morning everyone we're getting ready to start okay thank you I ask everyone once again at the beginning of this year just to turn off all cell phones thank you so much and we're still in the middle of this very beautiful mishna that is mish giml at the beginning of that was said by anus but as we begin the she every single week and this week is no different of course we start with the introductory introductory statement which is taken from aod inan and it says all of Israel has a share in the world to come we begin pickos every single time we learn with that very powerful and important positive statement that we have to keep in mind on a regular basis call is all the Jewish people individually and collectively we have a share in the world to come it gives us an opportunity to reflect upon this special relationship with Jews and our KES and that no matter how th things seem to be ultimately it ends up that we have a as it says in the and your entire nation is right they shall forever inherit the land they are the branch of my planting air the work of my hands that I may be glorified says Hashem a very important announcement we have to do each week we want to remind everybody that Rabbi snow she is generously sponsored for the 2024 5 Academic Year by Scott and Linda hanfor former uh balaba and uh members of our in B par the young B par and they they actually live now in I think balakin wood Pennsylvania if I'm not mistaken and they heard that we're having a sheer and generously sponsored for the OU which is a very important thing to do so we thank them very much uh we we had already he had already discussed some major issues having to do with this famous M just a very quick perusal of some important points number one anos you remember there was something unusual about the name what's unusual about the name anos what Greek name right normally we don't give names of great rabis you know give a Greek name you know but uh he was given a Greek name so we we proposed that possibly this is also due to the famous statement that happened with Alexander the Great the gar and Yuma as it tells us that when Alexander the Great met with shimad and he was convinced not to press his desire to go into The KES kashim he he accepted shim sadic statement I'll tell you what I'll give you a consolation prize what's the consolation prize every Jewish baby boy that's bornn this year will be named after you that's how we get the name Alexander in Hebrew what does Alexander have to do there was an AB yob there wasn't an Alexander or a sender sender is also from that sender Alexander yeah sender so that uh that's not a Jewish name necessarily but it became because of shim sadic and possibly when it came to anos is anos also was a very benevolent ruler and the Jewish people accepted anti the name antigos and consequently his name remained and he came along and he said after he was Mel he accepted the tradition in the M line from shimad and he used to say don't be like the servants aim that serve the master on condition that you're going to get a press on condition of getting a press and we already went through a little bit of discussion about the fact that alas has a very serious implication because the gamar says that alas is as if it's happening right now and consequently don't be a a a servant who is serving the master on condition that immediately you're going to get reward you know it can't be immediate but rather at some point down the line you're going to get the reward and we have a discussion about the word PR and that's where we're on now on condition that we're going to get a press what do you mean by the word press so press means prusa prusa means a piece and a piece means not all in other words don't serve God on condition that you're going to get some piece of the reward maybe antigos is trying to say don't sell yourself short don't be a servant who serves the master because you want to get a little bit of a reward don't do that don't sell yourself short don't just get a PR think of it more positively when we serve Hashem there's a guarantee that we're going to get not just a piece of the reward but we can actually hope for the entire reward which which himself tells us in fact this week said if you're going to go in my statutes then I'm gonna give you I'm gonna give you the rain in its time and the fruit of the land is gonna be given out and you live in your land with security so there's a tremendous amount of reward that's available and therefore you shouldn't just accept something that's called excuse me let's called the pr okay and that's that's that's where we got as far as uh the discussion of of of Pras there is a there is a very interesting uh comment that we even made mention of part of it uh last week by the Bala FLW whose famous uh tretis uh on onus which is known as the quoting excuse me quoting p gimmel in M now now for those of you who who have ever had the opportunity of going through Mish you know mishle was written by SCH Proverbs and when you when you uh when you go through it every every sentence is you can spend an hour on each and every sentence in mishle but p gimel in mishle has some has a PK which is very very relevant says the Bal law to the m that we're discussing the the per begins like this now as soon as you hear some of these words you're going to immediately be so oh that's where it's from you know I've heard this before start like this and it doesn't only mean male but it means my child don't forget my Torah and my my Mitzvah shall be guarded and protected in your heart that's the beginning and then in p b he says because Length of days and years of life Shalom and peace will be added on to you again these are words that are sounds very familiar kindness and truth will never leave you Al tie them around your neck as a as a necklace and write them on the on the LU on the Slate of your heart you these words sound very familiar because they show up in many different forms and then of course comes a PK which you'll recognize immediately where does that come where's that familiar from of course so says when you when you do the Torah and you don't forget it you'll find favor and intelligent wisdom in the eyes of Hashem and of people anyone who anyone who studies the Torah Jew non-jew it doesn't matter they're amazed at what what the what the Brilliance is in in in the in the in the a little further because I want to get to the PK that is relevant to our section today the p goes on to say of course have faith in don't rely on your own intelligence don't rely on your own thinking you know too many people say well I think differently you know I have a different opinion you have a different opinion okay he says don't don't rely on that and now comes another which is very familiar in all your ways you should know him and that knowledge and the study of the Torah will straighten out your paths because it will make everything clear and the pum go on and say don't be so wise in your own eyes uh fear God and turn away from we're going to get to the concept of fear God a little bit at the end of the Mish it's going to be a healing for your body and it will be like uh like marrow in your bones it's the essence of your body and then of course serve honor Hashem from your very Essence and with all the produce of your your life then he goes on to say and we're going to get to the main in a momentem will fill your storehouses with withy and the and the T the wine of your uh wine Fields will spread forth don't despise the teachings of hasem this is very important to comes from the word a coat is a thorn don't don't get so thorny don't get so upset over hashem's rebuke in other words it's it's it comes along with the knowledge and awareness of our relationship with him don't get so upset if a little bit you get you know you get you get a a reminder of hashem's you know why because Hashem strives to reprove and rebuke the ones that he loves and it's like a father who's working on the child to help the child see the right path and when we look at hashem's personal involvement with ourselves we should be satisfied that even though we're not getting everything we want well you know how many time I've been told this by somebody a very fine religious person said I prayed so much and it didn't happen well the Jewish people are a long time here and uh sometimes we've been ding for things for a very very long period of time didn't happen doesn't mean we give up we understand that has a plan then it goes on to say fortunate is the person who finds wisdom and ultimately what happens is that they spread out with understanding and we're getting to the PK I wanted to focus on keep maybe this sound familiar because it's the the the the merchandise is better than any money can buy and it becomes even better than the planted wheat and now we're coming to the P I wanted to speak about what happens in the Torah is more valuable than pan P meaning jewels when we have the Torah that is so valuable it's better than any Jewels you can imagine Pim implies a very very precious Jewel yeah it reminds me of the Yiddish phrase is the best exactly where it comes from you got it you got it and then it says the crunch line that we want to focus on now all your desires will never equal it a person is under the impression that says I'm don't be like the servants who serve the master in order to get just a piece you know why because all of your desires are never going to be equal to it you can't accomplish anything in life that you want without relationship to the Torah because nothing that you want will ever be equal to what comes along with the observance of the Torah and that's why antigos was trying to say sometimes says the B law what happens is a person will let's say ignore possibly or look away from the performance of a Mitzvah because it's going to cost me too much money if I have to get up to go to the early minion because my work schedule says that I can't come to the late minion so I'm going to D the short form whatever that short form happens to be you know because there are a lot of short forms you know if someone really has a problem okay so I can't D the old ding so what do they do they they say they say they say from and then they ALU goodbye okay right and if if you really press for time there isn't has a discussion about saying meaning you can say which is one which includes all the other bras if your Mish don't have time and you can't let's say someone is working and it's impossible for them to stop the working maybe they're a surgeon and they're in well that that that of course is going to take precence but I'm just giving you an example maybe a computer analyst that's on a that's on a computer program that you know 10 10,000 people are waiting for you to accomplish or whatever but and you can't stop but you have to say something so you say the includes all the other prayers but what if you is that is that approach or is that the the approach is that the bottom line when you have no choice or is that your first your first uh choice of doing the job so when it comes to the there are so many times where he says but if you do this it's okay too but if you do this it's okay too does that become the goto path of observance of of course not that's only you know in the inevitable case where you can't stop but shouldn't become the go-to uh program that you're in and that's what that's what antigos is trying to say he say in order to sell yourself short because what you're going to do is it's true you're you're going to you're going to accomplish that you'll get the Mitzvah but but what are what are you doing you're you're giving a a value you're saying this Mitzvah is only worth so much because I make $4,000 an hour and I'm only going to do a half an hour so it's $22,000 I put a value on the Mitzvah but that $2,000 is a price compared to what could be done if you were able to do it the full thing so the balaf flaw is coming along and saying don't sell yourself shorted don't say that it's equal to this because all the things that you are interested in will never be equal to it and the next tells us there is length of days in the right side of the mitvah and when it comes to the left side I just want to finish two because it ends up with that ending the section know its paths are Paths of pleasantness one of the things that we have to be aware is that when we deal with a situation where we want to accomplish to get the Torah to be acceptable and understandable one of the things that we must do is always to try to give a path where the paths are looked upon as being Pleasant one of the things that is the one of the biggest turn offs to you might say those who are looking to have a turnoff is that they say they're not pleasant people and that says schom is not a good thing because its ways are ways of pleasantness and all its paths are Peace So if we can portray a situation where people say you know nice people they're very nice people that in and of itself is going to be a boon for others to join in and of course the last p in this section it's a tree of life to those who grab hold of it and those who support it are so fortunate it's interesting that when it comes to the suum here you have to think about how what's the picture here it's a tree of life to those who grab hold of it wellik means you're holding on with with kak with power why is it that sometimes the Torah is looked upon as a tree of life that you got to grab onto it and other times but those who are leaning against it on it they are so fortunate what what a contrast from the beginning of the pule to the end on the one hand you have this picture of a tree of life that people are grabbing on to to hold on for dear life you know what's happening there's a tremendous wind and the wind is blowing and you're getting threatened to be Blown Away With the Wind so what do you do you go over to the tree and you grab onto the tree and hold on that the tree bends you'll Bend and it's going to the roots are so deep it's going to hold on to you and the picture there is one of holding on for dear life and then the other side comes here's this guy he's leaning on the wood you oh man it's so comfortable here I can stay here all day you know no problem because so that's the Torah it's amazing you can have the best time in the world and just be leaning and comfortably waiting for the 5 10 bus that doesn't show up for 20 minutes and you're just leaning against the tree and you're okay and at other times you got to hold on because the Winds of Change are coming and you have to grab on with all your strength in order to be able to survive so this section in Mish quoted by the B to explain anos was powerful because it's telling us don't settle for less don't sell yourself short don't put a price when a Mitzvah comes your way don't put a price on serving Hashem so that you're going to get a small stickle of the reward just to get a little bit you want to get it so that you can cap capable of getting the whole thing okay so that's that's another way of explaining our question that we had about this there is a a fascinating I want to share this with you a fascinating comment in michlle by the and he says the following I have to read this here you got to hear some of this it's unbelievable he says when it says it's a tree of life what kind of tree are we talking about because it says it what kind of tree is it talking about says theor what what kind of Che is aapos tomor what a date pal right where where do we have a date pal in our Jewish lives the lul right the lul is capos by the way capos if it's plural it's spelled but in the when it says you take the lul it says it doesn't say it says and the gar in Suka learns out from here that the lulov has many many branches but you're not supposed to take a whole bunch of branches because it says kapas which is singular so you're taking one branch but that one branch at the same time has to be a plural because it says capos sure enough we take a lul which has many branches not a single Lula stickle like like the Palm you know business it's it's costum it's a Lula which has many branches and listen to what he said this is unbelievable [Applause] latria think about it lul is lamid v lamid b so lamid and V is 36 right another lamid 6 is 66 and the Bas is 68 right right so what does that number mean what is made up of so is eight two is 20 me is 40 68 when you grab hold of the lul you're grabbing hold of Life eight it's a tree of life when you hold on to it that's what the says he he he he brings that there's a couple there's a couple of more things that he mentions uh about uh you know when it when it comes to the when it comes to the tribes and the counting in the beginning of midbar of all the read midbar next week so mention all the names of the you'll know notice that it says the different names of the it says and so onate this and mate that and so on and so forth and then it says M mate the the brand the shav of M it doesn't say it leaves out the V it says because which means the ones who served and worked in order to support the learning ofar will consider one shav and that's why says but rather it's all one thing together the serving of Hashem and the learning and support of it is all one that's why there's no V over there okay so that sort of encapsulates what we mean when we say there's a lot more in this bat if you have a chance to take a look at it it's in Mish in per gimel right at the beginning you'll see how beautiful it ties in with what uh with what anos was trying to say over here okay there's a very interesting uh there's a very interesting p in M which will have a chance to read on sh and M has so many many powerful and important teachings having Rel relationship to the statement of an in Bay we know the basic story you know so R she goes and she clings with her mother-in-law and so on and so forth and then when it finally comes to uh going to collect in the field in in PK y Al and uh you know uh what happens is that Russ meets uh with the owner of the field and P says that what does what does r do she falls on her face before the master so to speak and she says to him how come you're paying so much attention to me I'm not even Jewish you know why are you so kind to me so V boas boas answers her and say it has been surely told to me all that you did for your mother-in-law after your husband passed away and you left your father and mother the and the land of your birth and you went to join a nation that you had no knowledge of prior to this at all and then Boaz gives her a br and he says to her Hashem should pay back your work your efforts remember that we're studying the mishna which says soas is giving her he's not saying just a little bit he says watch the next words and your your not PR not a little bit and your should be complete from hasem the god of Israel fascinating take a look at the word and your your reward should be what's schma complete complete right how would you spell SCH with remember we're talking about M how would you spell it right doesn't spell it that way it says you know what says oh who came from Russ not only David but schlomo who wrote mle that we were just learning and your reward should be complete should be shom who taught the world of what we just said in mishle what we say that there's nothing that you can hope for in this world will ever equal what thear is and that's why don't just take a piece of the action don't sell yourself short and say I'll just take a little bit of the reward but it should be Shalo it should be complete and it should give us like you should know there's a very interesting there's a very interesting um gamor that sort of hints at this there's an interesting gamarra famous story with RAB Bosa and his wife in in uh in very wellknown a wellknown uh a well-known story a lot of people have heard about it we could going through it is fascinating because because what happens is that when you when you study it a little bit when you study it a little bit you get the impression that I'm I'm reading something before this okay because it's a couple of this Al together okay uh what H what what happens over here is uh yeah okay and this is uh this is not the it's all it's all mixed in with all right but he says like this it says the following there's a whole bunch of stories here and at some point they were very very poor goes on and tells a couple of stories about how absolutely uh poor they were and uh one day okay he says the's wife said to him how long do we have to go and suffer so much for Torah we're so poor has a number of stories of how poor they were we don't have time to go into all them but she says what how how how long how much longer are we going to have to put up with this poverty so he said to her what can I do you know so what do you want me to do what am I supposed to do so she said to him why don't you ask for some mercy that Hashem should give you some of the reward that you're going to obviously get no there's a tremendous available so say you know what yeah I I know I'm I'm do a100 million doar so so give me a million in the meantime and down payment you know and and we'll we'll manage for the rest of our lives like this why do I have to suffer so much so he he he listened to his wife ra he he prayed for Mercy you also saw Comm p y out came a hand and and he he saw a hand came down with a with a golden uh leg right and uh gave it g gave it to him and gave it to him he had a golden leg of a table and he could take the golden leg and he could sell it for x amount and live comfortably for the rest of his life and then he had a dream he saw in his dream that all the great rabbis and everybody who was sadik were eating at tables now again you have to take this as a metaphor because there's no eating in Hab and they're all eating at a table with three legs the table had three legs why is it a table what's the GU to do with a table with three legs why why not a table of four legs why it have to be a table of three legs the Mas explains that you know we're dealing with P Al and in so what what what do we say right all the things that I mentioned so those are the three legs that hold up the world and they're eating all at the table with three legs right and we have to sit at a table with only two legs I guess that you know if you're eating uh if you're eating a steak and you have to cut it with two hands so you can have to hold up the table with one of your feet you know not too comfortable in all my sitting over there with missing the golden leg so so om say she said to him what would you want everybody else to be sitting at a table that have all the legs and we're sitting at a table that's missing right so she said to him what should we do beg for mercy he should take the leg back now you have to understand this is really my said this is like really upside down you know we can do in all our lives that we want you know please you got to help me out a little bit over here you know and sure enough hasem helps he gets a good job you bought a lottery ticket whatever you know and you won Hashem helped out imagine if you get the lottery ticket you win and you know how many people who win lottery tickets they ruins their lives M you know so imagine if they imagine that they would ever do this you know take back the lottery ticket it's like you're asking the reverse of the possibility of what everybody else in the world wants and that's what she told him to do right right oh says the the second miracle that they took back the leg Hashem took back the golden leg was greater than the first miracle which was that gave him the reward we have a rule sh yeah giving we'll give we can give but to take back doesn't work it doesn't work so so here you see again there's a possibility of of getting some reward but not all of it and that's why said Don't Settle by saying I want PR I want a little reward he gave it back I don't want it I don't want I don't want to sell myself short I don't want to I I don't want to set a table with two legs you're missing something vital over here and that's why anos is mentioning this is mentioning this at such at this juncture okay a little bit more we have just a few more minutes I want to I want to finish a little bit more there is a there is another statement that uh we find in the Bening in the benching that we say on a regular basis right we're asking for so many many things right what are we asking for when we say from all the good should never be missing from us anything we said so many things and so on and so forth what what are we missing what if we didn't say that sentence what would be missing what's this says the again because what we're saying is we don't want anything to be missing from our just like and his wife didn't want anything missing from the we should never from the the should not be missing anything we don't want says that we should be PR in this world and that little PR will be our ultimate reward we want much more because we want and therefore don't take the Press because you don't want that you're going to ultimately want to give back the Press what you really want be you don't want a PR but you want what hasem promised in this week's and so on and so forth okay there is a the end of the end of that mishna the end of this mishna is very very significant because end of the mishna makes the statement that he says and the should be on you now what's so me the fear of Heaven should be on you the whole question of what is what what is fear what is this we supposed to have well how are we supposed to feel when it comes to have to be a God-fearing person what what do we what what are we supposed to be afraid of hm's going to zap me you know I shouldn't I shouldn't do this because Hashem will you know you you you're starting up with the wrong guy you know he's going to he's going to hit you with something is that what we're supposed to walk around feeling are we supposed to walk around feeling that we're possibly going to be punished and that's what is all about the humans have and it's it's not perfect we're not supposed to be perfect so so you do the best you can but uh so what's your so what's the is that first of all like you wouldn't cross the you wouldn't go in a in a traffic you wouldn't go through a red light the red lights you have to Define what the red lights are okay okay so that's one shot okay there's there's a lot to say about this I I I really I guess I have to leave it for the next time all right I really guess I have to leave this next time I'll tell if you next week I'll mention uh I'll make a note about it to to say this particular uh story I'll tell you a story with with Feinstein that was said to me uh by the rav himself when when we discussed this particular question of what Shay really is and we'll open up with that next week before we go on to the next Miss but but but the but the uh Rito who was the uncle of ysf caro comes up with a very interesting explanation on this particular point and he comes along and he says like this the the means that he himself should look upon you in such a way that he' be afraid to harm you that who loves you so much just like a father loves a child and would be so cautious about hurting his child how much more too when you do the mitzah that Hashem wants hm will put an aura of protection around you and the fear that hem has of hurting anyone else will be upon you and you will not get hurt because of it okay next week we'll continue with this we'll start with this particular point and then we'll go on to the next M have a wonderful Shas